...Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Vietnam War Veterans COMM/156 4/14/2013 Professor Marsha Parker PTSD is an anxiety disorder classified as a mental illness caused by exposure to terrifying or life threatening events. During the time of war, people get exposed to devastating experiences such as sexual abuse, witnessing murder of family members or familiar people, and other horrors of war. As a result, the victims suffer from mental disorders since the horrible experiences are forever ingrained in their mind. Bearing in mind that bad memories are rarely erased, the experiences can be compared to a horror movie that is often played in the mind and constantly frightens the victim to death. On one hand the victim celebrates survival but on the other hand the experiences haunt one through night mares or flashbacks. The victim remains constantly on edge and is easily startled. Some common feelings include intense guilt and some time numbness- all signs of posttraumatic stress disorder (TMP, 2012). A research finding by Bruce Dohrenwend and colleagues from New York State Psychiatric Institute and Columbia’s Letter Carrier School of Public Health, shows that traumatic experiences during war predicted the onset of PTSD in Vietnam veterans (Mikulak, 2013). We will examine the PTSD in Vietnam War veterans. Human existence has been always exposed to traumatic incidences of various kinds. For instance, attacks by lions or even the twentieth century terrorist attacks to...
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...Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder After experiencing a traumatic event, the mind horde away the memories and then send them back at unexpected times and places, even after years have passed. It does so in such a way that makes the recall just as traumatizing as the first time it happened. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is the name for the acquired mental condition that follows a psychologically distressing event. The root cause of this disorder is a traumatic event which embeds itself firmly in the mind that the person may be bounded by the pain and agony of the event, experiencing it again and again as the mind stays connected with the past rather than the present, which makes it difficult to think of the future. PTSD has different effects that manifest itself in different ways in individuals such as veterans, post-partum women, and 9/11 victims. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that develops after a traumatic event. PTSD has also been called shell shock or battle fatigue. The exact cause of PTSD is unknown; however, it is triggered by exposure to some sort of traumatic event(s). Situations in which a person feels intense fear, helplessness, or horror are considered traumatic. PTSD has been reported in people who experienced, war, rape, sexual abuse, car accident, pregnancy, and much more. Not everyone who experiences a traumatic event will develop PTSD. People with PTSD experience symptoms...
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...POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER IN WAR VETERANS SC-PNG-0000009299 Alwin Aanand Thomson American Degree Program SEGi College Penang 1.0 INTRODUCTION Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any event that results in psychological trauma. This event may involve the threat of death to oneself or to someone else, or to one's own or someone else's physical, sexual, or psychological integrity, overwhelming the individual's ability to cope. As an effect of psychological trauma, PTSD is less frequent and more enduring than the more commonly seen acute stress response. Diagnostic symptoms for PTSD include re-experiencing the original trauma(s) through flashbacks or nightmares, avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma, and increased arousal—such as difficulty falling or staying asleep, anger, and hyper vigilance. Formal diagnostic criteria in DSM-IV-TR require that the symptoms last more than one month and cause significant impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning (American Psychological Association). 2.0 DIAGNOSIS Criteria The diagnostic criteria for PTSD, stipulated in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV (Text Revision) (DSM-IV-TR), may be summarized as: A: Exposure to a traumatic event This must have involved both (a)...
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...Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can lead to psychological problems in many men and women, and especially veterans, due to traumatic events. “Post-traumatic stress disorder is an anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to a terrifying event or ordeal in which grave physical harm occurred or was threatened.” (Insel,2001,1) History This disorder is a relatively new diagnostic. In fact, before the diagnosis, veterans called these symptoms “Shell Shock.” It wasn’t until 1980 that the DSM III made Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) an official psychiatric diagnosis for veterans. Diagnostic Statistic Manual is a book used by the medical profession to diagnose a disorder. In 1994, DSM IV includes people that have been in traumatic events such as combat, sexual and physical assault, being held hostage or imprisonment. After the discovery, psychiatrist’s found out that this disorder affects millions of men and women through out the world. (Davis,2003,1) Traumatic Events: Symptoms People with PTSD will have flashbacks that re-experience the event. These flashbacks may be in different types of sensory forms. Usually when a person is experiencing this disorder, they will have a chronic hyper arousal in the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS). This can include jumpiness, rapid breathing, accelerated heart beat, and cold sweating. This can lead to loss of appetite, a bad night sleep and even sexual dysfunctions. (Rothschild,1997,6) Doctors often treat these symptoms without...
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...Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in soldier Abstract This paper will be discussing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in soldiers. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PSTD), classified as an anxiety disorder, has become increasingly important because of wars overseas, natural disasters, and domestic violence. Typically the individual with PTSD persistently avoids all thoughts, emotions and discussion of the stressor event and may experience amnesia for it. However, the event is commonly relived by the individual through intrusive, recurrent recollections, flashbacks and nightmares. The characteristic symptoms are considered acute if lasting less than three months, chronic if persisting three months or more, and with delayed onset if the symptoms first occur after six months or some years later. PTSD is distinct from the briefer acute stress disorder, and can cause clinical impairment in significant areas of functioning. We will be discussing how PTSD affects the soldiers coming from war, their behaviors, and interaction with society and suicide incidence. Keywords: PTSD, anxiety disorder, soldiers. Post Traumatic Stress disorder in soldier As of today a great number of soldiers that have returned from the Iraq war are suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The most current military combats in Iraq, which have involved the ground combats as well as air battle embarked by the United States since the war in Vietnam almost 50 years ago, bring up very essential...
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...Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders 1 Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders: Defining, Diagnosing, Correlation with Insomnia and Nightmares as well as The Treatment and Recovery Processes in War Veteran’s Tammy L. Egan Fulton-Montgomery Community College Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders 2 Abstract Post-traumatic stress disorder or most commonly known as PTSD, is a common problem for veterans returning from war all over the world. It can often be misdiagnosed as a traumatic brain injury or overlooked altogether because of the similarities in their symptoms. This paper will define what post-traumatic stress is as according to the Diagnostic Manual of Mental Disorders, its correlation with insomnia and nightmares, traumatic brain injuries and rare heart conditions, and it summarizes various treatment options including virtual reality, the Recover process, cognitive processing therapy, clinical programs, the use of the drug propranolol, and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing. Lastly, it will review problems with those treatments, involving flaws in the research studies, ethical issues and gender issues. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders 3 Defining, Diagnosing, Correlation with Insomnia and Nightmares as well as The Treatment and Recovery Processes in War Veteran’s Wars have been fought for centuries, and the soldiers fighting these wars often come home scarred, either physically, mentally, or both. Soldiers who exhibit...
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...This is a research paper on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in which it explains that the treatment of this mental condition goes beyond regular mental health treatment. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder: The War at Home Regina N. Chance Kwoya Fagin, Professor ENG215 Research and Writing 7 August 2010 Post Traumatic Stress Disorder: Takes Special Medical Care The government is awesome at getting men ready for war, but they can’t quite get them back to civilian life and a humble heart. - JUNIOR ENLISTED MARINE, POST-IRAQ After we came back, many of us were only back in body. Our souls stayed over there. – ARMY COMBAT ENGINEER, POST-IRAQ Transition can mean the big picture of how a warrior has to try to adjust back into society, but the short term is very critical, from when a warrior leaves the battlefield to when they hit the streets at home. If there’s one thing I learned from my experiences, it was that there was no transition at all. –VIETNAM VETERAN Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has become the major medical issue with our soldiers returning from the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. For many soldiers, it is a badge of honor to have served but for most, it is a start to an endless battle of finding the courage to continue to serve or be labeled an unfit soldier for the military and useless to their family. PTSD affects not only the soldier’s way of life but the core of who the soldier is. For this...
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...How Deployment Stress Affects Children and Families Keith Kovach Daymar Institute BMG 124 December 11, 2013 With all the frequent moves of military families, absence of either parent to a combat zone represents a challenge of a different magnitude. The one that stays behind (usually the mother), more responsibilities, finances, loneliness, and fear for the deployed soldier’s safety can cause anxiety, isolation, sadness and feelings of being overwhelmed. In my experience during my deployments, my family has felt isolation, loneliness, and stress of handling daily tasks without me. My son has taken his anger out on his mother because I wasn’t there to be with them. Studies have showed that Post-traumatic Stress Disorder not only hinders the soldier’s wellbeing, but also the spouse and children for soldiers with families as well as that of soldiers that are single because they take their frustration out on girlfriends, boyfriends, friends, and family. In Archives and Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, children, whose parents serve in the military have different reactions when one of their parents deploys. Stress varies with age and presence of preexisting psychological or behavioral problems and how one deals with the problem. Young children can show separation anxiety, tantrums, and changes in their eating habits. Older children can change in how they perform in their academics and develop some behavior issues or physical complaints...
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...Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Necessary Improvements the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and United States Department of Defense Must Make Abstract Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a mental anxiety disorder, affects 13% to 20% of armed force members returning from Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) (Hoge, et. al, 2004), in addition to a large population of Vietnam Veterans. Within the past 32 years, awareness of this disorder has escalated and the realism of the severity of this disorder has been noticed. Efforts to screen and treat PTSD in military veterans have been established by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Screening is conducted once military personnel return from deployment and treatments including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, Exposure Therapy, and medications are used to relieve the symptoms of PTSD. These screening and treatment methods are evaluated and s suggestion for improvement is made. Necessary Improvements the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and the United States Department of Defense Must Make With Regards to Posttraumatic Stress Disorder In current political debate, the United States is arguing where budget cuts should be made and how the U.S. should go about spending money. The U.S. military is consistently brought up in these considerations. In such considerations, topics such as downsizing the military and the...
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...Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Sean C. Hall Colorado Technical University In recent years, the United States Armed Forces has become increasingly alarmed at the growing problem of severe Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), resulting in the increased rate of suicides in their troops. While most agree that PTSD deserves attention, consensus dissolves around how to effectively respond to the problem. In 2008, the Us Army commissioned the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) on behalf of their soldiers; in an effort to better understand and maximize treatment for soldiers diagnosed with sever Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Vietnam veterans are particularly vulnerable to post-traumatic stress disorder. Thousands of the 600,000 Americans who served in that war still suffer feelings of alienation, sleeping problems, relieving of painful experiences, and difficulty concentrating. Most veterans do not suffer from the disorder; of those who do, many did not experience symptoms until months or even years after their return home. Those who suffer from the disorder seem more likely to have other stressful events in their lives, which in turn make the disorder seem worse. The wounds of war do not go away with time, or just by leaving them alone. They need to be addressed, and this is something that you cannot do alone. If you were wounded physically during combat, you would allow a medic to attend to the wound. This is no different. Your psychological wounds must be attended...
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...Ailen Fernandez PSY 102 April 21, 2013 Jones, Jennifer Catastrophes and Stress American Leader Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity” (Martin). Luther King believed that in order for us humans to have a meaningful live we must put aside our personal problems and care about the problems of humanity as a whole. The earthquake of Oakland, California in 1989 is a true example of this quote. As the sirens of ambulances roared through the abolished city thousands of civilians gathered together, taking risks, to help those that were in the borderline of life and death. Learned helplessness, survivors’ guilt and altruism were all forever cultivated in the lives of those that lived the tragedy. Learned helplessness is a “giving-up reaction” (Learned Helplessness, 2006) that individuals experience when they are not in control of the outcome of an event. The earthquake in Oakland, California occurred unexpectedly, not even seismologist could detect the upcoming monster that damaged so many cities (Amaldo, 2004). As the people started to feel the shanking and falling of objects to them, they started to experience learned helplessness because there was nothing that they could do to stop or change the outcome of the earthquake (Amaldo, 2004). In the video Surviving the San Francisco Earthquake of 1989 learned helplessness is seen when...
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...Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In Military Families Angelica Sevcik Eastern State Florida Collage Fall 2015 Total Word count References=Body WC Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In Military Families. Davis, L. L., Pilkinton, P., Poddar, S., Blansett, C., Toscano, R., & Parker, P. E. (2014). Impact of social challenges on gaining employment for veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder: An exploratory moderator analysis. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 37(2), Purpose: To explore whether psychosocial challenges impact effects of vocational rehabilitation in Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Hypothesis Procedure: A post hoc exploratory analysis of possible moderators of treatment was conducted...
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...Running head: POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER Post-traumatic Stress Disorder in Military Veterans Jason Rosenbaum Grand Canyon University HLT-515 Dr. Rick Edwards 22 June 2014 Post-traumatic Stress Disorder in Military Veterans Negative mental health outcomes following warzone exposure, particularly posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), can serve as a barrier for veterans reintegrating back into civilian life. PTSD is marked by clear physical and psychological symptoms caused by physical injury or an intense emotional distress. PTSD in military veterans can occur following a life-threatening event such as military combat, terrorist incidents, serious accidents, or violent personal assaults like rape. PTSD symptoms include depression, substance abuse, problems of memory and cognition, and other physical and mental health problems. This disorder can also be traced to difficulties in social settings or family life, finding a job, marital problems, and in performing parental acts. PTSD is a condition that impacts American military personnel who have returned from deployment and were exposed to encounters with the enemy. Approximately 7% of Americans develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at some point in their lives (Kessler, Berglund, Demler, Jin, Merikangas, & Walters, 2005). Due to increased exposure to traumatic situations (i.e., combat), the prevalence of PTSD is much greater among war veterans compared to the general population...
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...Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder And our duty as Americans By: David Beach Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is something that you and your friends may not know much about. The truth is unless you have direct experience with soldiers who have participated in combat, or a situation of great tragedy, you may not have even heard of PTSD. Unfortunately PTSD is something that is overlooked by more than just the general population. The problem lies in the government and those responsible for the care of PTSD victims, specifically soldiers, because the funding and care needed simply isn’t there. PTSD is a fairly recent mental disease. Diagnosed and accepted officially in 1980s, it’s known that PTSD has been around for centuries. PTSD is an emotional illness that develops when a person is exposed to a highly dangerous, very terrifying, possibly life-threatening event. Obviously this disease tends to affect soldiers much more than the general population. Before recognized as a disease PTSD was looked down upon and soldiers were shunned for showing symptoms. This brought about a negative stereotype to PTSD that is still seen today. As Americans, shouldn’t we know better than that? Seriously, are we shunning the defenders of our country that are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice everyday they wake up? The American people can do better than that, and we owe it to our soldiers to eliminate this public negative stereotype. It will not be acceptable to see a similar Post-Vietnam...
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..."combat fatigue," "shell shock," or "war neurosis." Combat veterans often return from deployment having experienced a wide range of exposures, symptoms and medical conditions. The Department of Veterans Affairs established war related illness and injury study centers to serve combat veterans with unexplained illnesses. History Although many coexisting disorders have been reported with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), little reference has been made to the presence of psychotic symptoms. Post-traumatic stress disorder is commonly described among victims of severe trauma outside of normal human experience, in this case the combat veterans returning from deployment. Traumatic events can lead to reevaluation of life and its meaning; a reconsideration of what is truly important which often changes one’s set of priorities. Trauma often causes abrupt cessation of continuity in coherence in sense of one’s self (Barlow, 2002). In the early 1800’s military doctors began diagnosing soldiers with "exhaustion" following the stress of battle. This "exhaustion" was characterized by mental shutdown due to individual or group trauma. Like today, soldiers during the 1800’s were not supposed to be afraid or show any fear in the heat of battle. The only treatment for this "exhaustion" was to bring the afflicted soldiers to the rear for a while then send them back into battle. Through extreme and often repeated stress, the soldiers became fatigued as a part of their body’s natural...
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